Eric Nam Lights Up New York at his House on a Hill Tour Stop
Photos by Jean Libert
The New York stop of the Eric Nam House on a Hill Tour on October 11 was simply perfection. A perfect New York night, standing on the glorious The Rooftop at Pier 17 with the backdrop of southern Manhattan, the Brooklyn Bridge and the East River, plus a full house eager to see Eric made for the ideal setting. The night had amazing music, dancing, and therapy, as well as a lot of humor. With new and old tracks, the icon that’s been around the U.S. K-Pop scene for over a decade proved that he’s stronger than ever.
The night opened with a special guest Alexander Stewart. Casually dressed with a relaxed demeanor, his sweet personality came through his voice: “You really made me feel really f*cking special out here.” Singing his popular songs such as “House of Cards,” “I'm trying,” the emotional “blame’s on me,” and ending with “echo,” the energetic soul with the velvet voice did his job getting the roof even more excited for the main act to come.
Coming in from the back amongst smoke and lights, Eric Nam appeared through the fog in a brilliant white suit, angelically descending from the mist singing one of his new tracks from his House on a Hill album, “Sink or Swim.” With the live band supporting him, the guitar and drums gave the song a more rock edge than the album track which made you want to move from the get go. The night was off to a brilliant start and the screams from the audience attested to it. As the guitar chords brought to life another song from the album, “undefined,” Eric’s voice brought to life the feelings embedded in the song as the music floated into the night air. As he moved across the stage making eye contact with those in the audience, you could feel the energy that he emitted.
Greeting the crowd, he expressed his hope that everyone came ready to sing and dance. From the way the night started, this seemed a non-issue as you could hear the voices singing the chorus filling the air with his next tracks, “Any Other Way” and “What If.” Dancing across the stage with the occasional sexy hip swirls and turns, Eric had the floor enthralled. Encouraging everyone to put their hands in the air, arms swayed as we all grooved to his sound.
The next segment was a jump into his self-proclaimed “Eric Nam Classics,” Eric jokingly stated, “If you know them, please sing along as loud as you can, if you don’t, it’s fine, pretend like you do, I can’t tell the difference if you’re moving your mouth.” “You’re Sexy, I’m Sexy” was the first of his classics. As Eric slapped his butt to the beat, screams could be heard around, attesting to his humorous display of sexiness. With the addition of his backup dancers, Eric plunged into his dance repertoire and the crowd was living for it. “Wildfire” had an aura created by dramatic smoke and lights. With his clear vocals, Eric dug into the slow high notes before fireworks exploded pushing the excitement of the performance.
“House on a Hill,” the title track on his latest album, was the next song on the roster. With “oohs” echoing around the roof, the song’s catchy chorus was impossible not to sing along to. As “Exist” went on, encouraged by Eric, everyone put their phone lights on, creating a gorgeous lit floor that swayed to the rhythm of the music. Eric’s vocals were especially heartfelt through the emotional lyrics.
Prior to this, Eric had amusingly stated, “My shows are more Ted Talks with a little bit of musical intermission, because I talk a lot.” It was now time for “tea.” Tea time with Eric is almost an exclusive Eric concert event. Asking the crowd to spill their tea, he got responses from dreams of sharing a sweater to a day, to road rage, to a day without tears from a fan who has an “existential crisis every day.” Fans came prepared as some had signs that said “I have tea.” One sweet fan’s boyfriend stated, “My boyfriend loves you and I’m okay with it,” while another spoke about the police crashing her recent wedding. All throughout, Eric’s manner of mimicking and making jokes as well as lending an ear made this a highlight of the show. Clearly there was more tea to be spilled, but it was time for the show to go on.
Eric then stated that it was time to dance, and with the popular ”Don’t Leave Yet” and “Paradise,” he was completely right. A bit out of breath after these songs, he took a moment of downtime to sit at the start of “I Wish I Wasn’t Me.” Coming to the front of the stage mid-song and standing lit from below, he glowed while the emotional lyrics poured over us and continued through “Love Die Young.” With more music, dancing, and crowds singing along to “Echo,” “Runaway,” and “Honestly,” it was soon time for last words and “I Don’t Know You Anymore.”
As most expect, the last isn’t the last and soon Eric was back for his encore. Mixing new and old, “Only for a Moment” was followed by his much loved “Congratulations.” The night was a mix of heartfelt emotions, amazing energy against a stunning backdrop with the perfect night sky above. Eric showed New York love which was reciprocated by all. With much laughter, the night unwillingly came to an end.
The world tour continues westbound across the United States before launching into Latin America, Asia, Europe, Australia and New Zealand. You can click here for upcoming dates and tickets. The show is not one to be missed, so if the tour comes your way, make sure to go for the music, the laughter, and the tea.
